Leila is a recent Moroccan-American Honors graduate from AmericanUniversity and GeorgetownUniversity in WashingtonDC. Leila is currently a lawyer working on judicial reforms to strengthen the rule of law worldwide, and pursuing post-graduate studies in international law and development at GeorgetownUniversity in WashingtonDC. Leila’s background and interests are broad in nature. She grew up in part in Southern Africa as the daughter of a diplomat. Since then, she has continued to pursue her international interests. Living abroad has given her the skills necessary to adopt new languages and adapt to new cultures, at the same time demonstrating the interrelatedness of all cultures, politics, and economies all around the globe.

Leila is a strong advocate for women and youth’s rights and empowerment. Her work through various University campus organizations and as the Director of the United Nations Association of the National Capital Area’s International Law Committee, Co-Chair of the UNA Andrew Rice for Global Education Fund, Director of the Maghreb Center Youth Committee, United Nations fellow, and founder of an Arab Young Women Legal Development Network is testimony of her dedication.

At only 19, Leila became one of the youngest professionals at the World Bank and acquired hands-on experience on international development issues. Leila is the President of the World Bank Women for Development Association and the winner of the World Bank Middle East and North Africa Youth Innovation Fund. Leila’s experience revealed the impressive energy of Morocco’s youth, especially young women, and the untapped force that they present in reaching out to and mobilizing other young people. Leila has always been disconcerted by the social disparities and the poverty due to underdevelopment that persists in developing countries. Leila has organized and presented at several international events, forums, and World Bank and United Nations high level meetings, advocating for young people’s legal rights and representing the young face of development. Leila has published several academic papers and articles. She also contributed to a few published works on legal development in the Arab world, and has been profiled in several national and international media outlets for her work.

Leila has shown a strong commitment to development and a passion for the legal empowerment of the poor. She has been an impressive advocate for these and other causes. A strong advocate of youth and women’s rights throughout her life, she has helped to move empowerment issues to the center of the development agenda, pushing the envelope and encouraging us to think of development in a more multidimensional way.